Entrepreneurship in Afghanistan: A guide for beginners

Entrepreneurship is still a new concept for the majority of Afghans because of the lack of infomation, limited access to internet and problems with the education system.
the Founder Institute as one of the first incubation programs in Afghanistan started its activities since 2014 and the program could offer its first graduate entrepreneurs to Kabul market in 2015. Since then, founder institute offers incubation programs and contributes towards the shift of mindset on starting and doing business in Afghanistan. Currently, we have a considerable number of youths that know about entrepreneurship and want to be part of the positive change while working on sustainable businesses.

As I believe currently stepping in as entrepreneurs in Afghanistan doesn’t mean only starting a business and making revenue but it contributes to more important aspects as job creation, providing solutions and finally contributing to a better and peaceful future for Afghanistan.

Some points that might inspire you to start a business in Afghanistan are as followings:

1. As human beings, we are all gifted with one special gift. Strive to discover the things you are good at! We all have one thing within ourselves that we can understand, learn, and do better than the majority of people. The problem is, not all of us try to explore that. Therefore, you need to take the time to explore different areas and understand what you are passionate about because passion leads to success. Are you very good at fashion and design? Are you one of those with great writing skills? Are you better comparing to the majority in terms of public speaking?”
Discover your passion and make it the core part of your business; I guarantee that nobody else will do the business better than your own self.

2. We are fortunate to live in Afghanistan, the land of opportunities. YES! I did not use the term The Land of Opportunities by mistake. From an entrepreneur’s perspective, the best places to start a business in are the ones with the higher number of challenges, because more challenges would require more solutions and taking action by providing solutions to those challenges are more opportunities for entrepreneurs. Therefore, Afghanistan is a great country to start a business in.

3. Entrepreneurship can help you learn about your true potential. Human beings can develop by progressing their knowledge and different skills to a very high level. Working for the others can bound one by comfort zone, limitations, and the number of activities one does. However, working as an entrepreneur will help one in discovering one’s true potential and self, because as an entrepreneur, one needs to perform better than the rest; that is because the team members always look up to entrepreneur; that is, the leader.

4. Finally, Develop your passion. You can learn more than a master’s degree program within the very first year of your startup. You can grow as a person and work on your social life by building a network. Furthermore, the better solutions you find to daily challenges, the more money you can make. Thus, why not enjoy the life that does not stop reminding you of the importance of your presence, your loved ones, your country, and this world.

Recently I had to deliver a motivational speech in a program called “Youth to Business” that was organized by Association Internationale des étudiants en sciences économiques et commercials (AIESEC); therefore, I thought that sharing my thoughts with the wider audience would be very good.

My speech consisted of three parts:

1. Why you should start as an entrepreneur in Afghanistan?
2. How you can start?
3. What to start?

This article covers only the first part, stay tuned if you want to read more about the second and third parts as well.

Matiullah Rahmaty is a young, visionary and serial entrepreneur of Afghanistan. He is the Co-Founder of Coworthy, Founders Institute Afghanistan and Advisory Board Member on Entrepreneurship for the British-Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Afghanistan Enterprise Council.

The views expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the British Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

British Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BACCI), is an independent non-profit organisation promoting bilateral trade, investment and economic cooperation between Afghanistan and the United Kingdom. BACCI strives to play an active and influential role in fostering a healthy environment for trade, business and economic cooperation between Afghanistan and United Kingdom through its corporate members, extensive regional knowledge, innovative business-to-business dialogue and strong government support.